Interview with Lanie Alabanza-Barcena, Head Designer of Hellz Bellz

Lanie Alabanza-Barcena, a San Diego native who moved to New York and got design gigs at places a lot of kids into street style would die for, created Hellz Bellz when she saw a void in the streetwear market for fresh women's clothing. We got the chance to chat with Lanie and find out more about her on both a professional and personal level. With a cut and sew collection out on the way, we're excited to see what Lanie comes up with next.

Read more to get to know Lanie and see what she's up to...

What made you want to start your clothing brand Hellz Bellz? What did you do before Hellz Bellz?

Before I started Hellz Bellz, there were few women's streetwear brands to choose from. There'd be times when I'd get so annoyed by the lack of really dope graphic tees for women. I'd often buy small mens tees or if I was lucky I'd find an x-small in mens. So I wanted to create a brand that catered to the female who wasn't afraid to push the envelope & wanted a getaway from the typical "cutesy" graphics. The other and more important reason I started Hellz Bellz is because I needed a personal project that enabled me to design whatever I wanted and to keep my creative juices flowing. This was important to me because before Hellz Bellz, I was working at Rocawear as the ladies art director. As you know, Rocawear is a pretty big urban company & when you work for corporations like that, it's often rare that you actually design what you want. It was very political there, as it is at all corporate jobs... I had to answer to the design director, who had to answer to head of production and sales, who had to answer to the merchandiser, who answered to Jay-Z. So at the end of the day, I was killing myself creatively & I was really tired of putting so much time and effort into the success of somebody else. I wanted to do my own thing.

Prior to Hellz Bellz and Rocawear I worked at Triple 5 Soul as the ladies graphic designer & prior to that I was in Los Angeles working for various private labels, designing both graphics and apparel. It's actually a lot more fun and challenging working for private labels. I loved being able to design for different tiers/projects. It kept my ideas and designs fresh. It's when you work for one company that isn't even yours that it becomes difficult and stale. I mean, you can only flip the RW flame (Rocawear logo) so many ways.

How did you come up with the name Hellz Bellz?

Before I even decided to start my own brand, I heard the sayings "Hell's Bell's and a bucket of blood" and "Hell's Bells and cockle shells" ... When I first heard them I thought, "Hmm, Hell's Bell's... that would be a dope brand name".

When the time came that I wanted to start my own line I had other names that came to mind like, Violet Fury but for some reason Hell's Bell's would keep popping up. I knew I wanted to juxtapose good and evil because I wanted to show that although I have a women's brand, it doesn't necessarily have to be a super cute brand. Instead of using flowers, hearts and rainbows, I wanted to use explicit in your face imagery with a bad girl aesthetic. My intent was to create a female brand that was edgy, and had substance. And well to make a long story short, it happened to have worked out perfectly that the sayings that I had once heard and kept coming to mind symbolized the bad and the good & that's how Hellz Bellz was born.

Where do you get your inspiration from when you're designing?

A lot of my inspiration comes from all things subversive, old movies, music, a joke I may have heard, images, or people that I relate to on any given day.

Have you always wanted to design streetwear clothing for women?

No, I didn't. Designing clothes for ladies was something that just happened. I did however, know that I wanted to be a designer. What kind of designer... I wasn't so sure. I went to an advertising arts college, with the hopes of working at an agency upon graduation. In the middle of my second year of school, the administration changed from an advertising school to an art institute, which was a good thing because it opened my eyes up to all these other aspects of design that I could get into. I later had internships at both a streetwear apparel company (Alphanumeric) and an advertising company (DiZinno Thompson). It was then that I decided to go the fashion route.

I've dabbled in both men's and women's designs but I figure I should just stick to what I know best. When designing mens' graphics I have to ask for second or third opinions from guys to see if they would rock it, whereas for women's I just know... if it's hot, it's hot.

How would you describe your sense of style? is it similar to the clothing pieces you come up with for Hellz Bellz?

I've noticed that my style has changed a lot now that I am older. Although, I love to dress up from time to time, I'm more about comfort, now & I like to mix it up... you'll find me wearing streetwear (almost always Hellz Bellz) & vintage. I like having key items with nice details that can be dressed up with rare/vintage accessories, preferably gold and a sexy pump or pair of Chucks or Vans... I'm addicted to Vans, which goes back to my need for comfort.

Since I design what I like, Hellz Bellz is definitely a reflection of my personal style. I never design something that I don't absolutely love or wear to death. Remember, I started Hellz so that I could wear clothes that I like & cater to me and girls like me.

What should we expect to see in Hellz Bellz' next season's collection?

For Fall, I've introduced my cut & sew collection, which includes knits, woven's, outerwear and a denim capsule called "Hellz". Graphically, you'll see some arabic influence, along with some hong kong street influence in the cut & sew. I worked really hard on it so I hope it gets a good reaction... but omg, wait until you see my Holiday collection.. fire!!!! Hehe.

What is Hellz Bellz' plan for the future? Where is it going to be taken?

The plan is to continuously re-invent Hellz Bellz and keep it fresh season to season. Hellz Bellz is like my baby so I wanna nurture it and grow it slowly and healthy. I want Hellz Bellz to be a brand that'll last a very long time that'll reach all sorts of strong minded & empowered women across the globe. As for where it's going to be taken... hopefully to the next level.

Insider info about Lanie...

Who are you favorite designers and/or Brands?

PAM, Hysteric Glamour, Vivienne Westwood, Insight, Jeremy Scott, Bernhard Willhelm, Wood Wood, House of Cassette

What are your favorite clothing stores or boutiques?

I love shopping at thrift stores. My favorite ones are back home in San Diego... I don't wanna say which ones cuz they're like, MY secret treasure spots... sorry :( Other stores that I love but can't neccessarily afford everything in there are Seven New York, Opening Ceremony, Base in Miami, and all the little boutiques & open markets in Hong Kong... love love love!!!

What kind of music are you listening to these days?

Lately.. a lot of electro & Baltimore house... Kid Sister, Uffie, Santo Gold, MIA, and when if it's not that... then I'm listening to my husband's old mixes. You can listen too, visit www.stateofmindradio.com

What do you do when you're not designing or overseeing the business?

Hanging out with my husband, Bam and our dog, Marley but you know the weird thing is that we never really aren't not working. Even if we're just hanging out, we're still bouncing ideas off of each other, planning our next project, or checking off our to-do list. It's fun for us... Some people, well a lot of people may think we're workaholics & well, we are but fortunately we have the same work ethic. We both know that this is the best time for us to grind out and hustle our asses off... right now, while we're still young. Our goal is to work hard now and chill out later so we can have lots of time and $$$ with our future children.

Are there any cool events you've attended recently?

Hmm, honestly no... sorry to disappoint. I'm such a workaholic/home body that I never really get a chance to go out much, but if you call going to the Vet to get my dogs yearly vaccinations a cool event, then there you go. Hopefully that'll change soon though. Once I get on calendar I'll have more time to kick back, relax and go out more often... I need to live it up in NY while I'm still here, so hopefully (I'm crossing my fingers), my hard work will pay off and I'll get on it. Oh but I am going to Barcelona soon for B&B... it'll be my first time in Spain so that'll be really cool :)

Thanks for chatting with us Lanie!

Visit www.hellz-bellz.com